Extended Warranty

Hey guys,

Picked up my 2019 MB 4x4 over the weekend and I declined the extended warranties. I have a couple weeks yet to decide if i would like to purchase them.

How does everyone else feel about the extended warranty. There was also a windshield protection warranty they tried pushing on me.

I have never bought a new vehicle so this has never been an issue I just know warranties are usually a bad idea but was looking for someone to change my mind.

Thanks.

You made the right decision. The products commonly referred to as "extended warranties" are actually MBI (Mechanical Breakdown Insurance) policies, and they are the most profitable thing that the dealership can cram up your butt- they are literally selling air.

Like any insurance, the person attempting to sell you an MBI policy is gambling that you won't need to use it, and thus it will profit them. In buying it, you would be gambling that you would use it, and thus it would profit you.

Again, in actual practice, it is the most profitable thing they can cram up your butt.

Don't fall for the windshield insurance either- that's already covered by your car insurance. If something took out your windshield, the most they would do for you would be to cover the deductible on your actual insurance. It would be stupid to pay money for deductible insurance.

I have used extended warranties several times. I used one recently with my sons car, needed some turbo work and he got it all done with very little expense to him. Wish I had it on my current van as had a few issues as soon as the warranty ran out. The warranty cost could have been a wash (depending on the length) but worth it in my mind. But I have really bad luck with damn near everything, I wish I was making that up but I digress.

red_johnny said:

I have used extended warranties several times. I used one recently with my sons car, needed some turbo work and he got it all done with very little expense to him. Wish I had it on my current van as had a few issues as soon as the warranty ran out. The warranty cost could have been a wash (depending on the length) but worth it in my mind. But I have really bad luck with damn near everything, I wish I was making that up but I digress.

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How exactly did YOU "use" an "extended warranty" on someone else's car?

The Grand Tour said:

How exactly did YOU "use" an "extended warranty" on someone else's car?

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Cause I paid for the car, why does it matter?

Mercedes Sprinters are hit and miss. On my 2016, I had a lot of problems and glad I had the extended warranty. Stupid things like the power steering pump and ABS hydraulic module failed and they are expensive. All these failed between 30,000 and 38,000 miles Prior to that I had an injector go bad and both rear wheel speed sensors. You should be able to buy the OEM Mercedes extended warranty anytime before your new vehicle warranty expires. Keep in mind that a 5 year warranty is really only a 2 year extension. I believe towing is included if the problem is a result of a warranty covered item. I had to use Mercedes towing twice.

With that said, a lot of people have no problems. You just never know.

This post prompts a question about the extended warranties shown on the MBNA on-line "Build a Van" Program: Has anyone added this warranty in the ordering stage?

$850 5 yr/100k mi (2 additional years and 64,000 additional miles)
2500 6 yr/120k mi (3 x's higher than two years but only 20k more miles)
4200 7 yr/140k mi (5 x's higher than two years but only 40k more miles)

When ordering my 2019, I asked dealership to add the $850 5 yr/100k mi warranty to the order. The Sprinter salesman asked his dealership controller, who told me the $850 warranty did not exist and could not be added up front, which caused me to LAUGH OUT LOUD inside the dealership showroom.

BTW, I feel that the two-year extension might be good insurance @ $425 per year. This might be most appealing to those owning the new 4-year gasser engine.

dynaco1 said:

This post prompts a question about the extended warranties shown on the MBNA on-line "Build a Van" Program: Has anyone added this warranty in the ordering stage?

$850 5 yr/100k mi (2 additional years and 64,000 additional miles)
2500 6 yr/120k mi (3 x's higher than two years but only 20k more miles)
4200 7 yr/140k mi (5 x's higher than two years but only 40k more miles)

When ordering my 2019, I asked dealership to add the $850 5 yr/100k mi warranty to the order. The Sprinter salesman asked his dealership controller, who told me the $850 warranty did not exist and could not be added up front, which caused me to LAUGH OUT LOUD inside the dealership showroom.

BTW, I feel that the two-year extension might be good insurance @ $425 per year. This might be most appealing to those owning the new 4-year gasser engine.

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Great assessment, I didn't realize how much higher that 7 year really was. Probably due to a higher probability of issues with higher miles in the later years. As I am looking at the gas engine I am leaning towards the 5 year warranty.

A) Extended warranties are almost always awful deals, for the reasons stated above.

B) The MB extended warranty is a particularly awful one. You have to read the fine print (which they make rather difficult). It is an INCLUSIONARY warranty, which means it ONLY covers the items listed. They make it sound like it is an extension of the basic warranty, but it is nothing of the sort. If it isn't listed, it isn't covered, and all kinds of things that you think would be covered are NOT. In particular none of the emissions system components are covered. They know what components are likely to fail and they exclude them. Several members have posted the text of their extended warranties. Find one and read it carefully. You will be appalled.

C) It is NOT true that you have "a couple of week to decide". You can buy the extended warranty from ANY dealer at any time before your basic warranty expires. So, you have a couple of YEARS to decide. But, there is only one sane decision, and you have already made it.

We extended the warranty on our Diesel BMW X5 for around $3,000 right before the original expired.
It paid for itself in the first year and everything else was gravy....
BMW sorted out what was emissions warranty covered and extended warranty covered...I paid nothing beyond some nominal co-pay of $100 a visit.
That car is good for one annual-ish visit of $2,000 for mostly diesel stuff....but we use it for short trip so the DPF isn’t happy. Still better than buying a new one as ours has 70,000 miles on it and we both like it....new one is $65,000......

My van is a 2017 with 31,000 miles and has been in service since April 2018....I’ll happily pay $850 to extend that to “5” years and 100k.....I’ll likely reach 100k over the next 3.5 years....

I don’t care if it’s a good deal or not.......$850 doesn’t pay for **** at a MB service department.

sprinterJake said:

Hey guys,

Picked up my 2019 MB 4x4 over the weekend and I declined the extended warranties. I have a couple weeks yet to decide if i would like to purchase them.

How does everyone else feel about the extended warranty. There was also a windshield protection warranty they tried pushing on me.

I have never bought a new vehicle so this has never been an issue I just know warranties are usually a bad idea but was looking for someone to change my mind.

Thanks.

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The BEST warranty is learning how to operate you new sweetie.

Buy and install a Scan Gauge II to monitor and avoid DPF regenerations, which occur about every 550 miles.

Avoid allowing the DEF low-level warning to activate which may result in a 'No start countdown' and trip to the Lemon Factory, aka Dealership service Department, for reset.

Avoid biodiesel.

Read the owner's manual, at least 4 times.

If you plan on going your own service, study first.

And...whatever you do, do not believe the hooey about 20,000 mile oil changes.

red_johnny said:

Great assessment, I didn't realize how much higher that 7 year really was. Probably due to a higher probability of issues with higher miles in the later years.

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That's because the MBI policy doesn't even start until the basic 3/36 warranty and 5/100 powertrain warranties expire.

Like I said, they're just trying to sell you air.

Those prices are retail. In the past you could shop around to all the MB dealers and get a good discount. I bought a Mercedes car 15 years ago and bought my MB warranty at a great discount and from a no sales tax state. My recollection is a discount over 20%. I’m guessing you can still do that. Just phone some dealers. It’s handled by the salesmen - not the service department.

The extended warranty paid off in my case but if I had the work done by an independent shop I could have saved a little money. I don’t think MB makes much more off warranties than they could make off paid repairs. Lack of warranty scares a lot of customers.

That $4500 for years 6 and 7 and miles from 100,000 to 140,000 seems high but when it comes time to sell the van It’s a great selling point.

I’d say buy it, but at a discount.

RudolfD said:

I don’t think MB makes much more off warranties than they could make off paid repairs.

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You should check your assumptions on that one. Generally speaking, extended warranties are among the most profitable products on the market. They are not far from fraud.

It IS true that OEM extended warranties should not be rejected out of hand (third-party warranties are ALWAYS garbage). The OEM can fix the car for less money than anybody else, and they have other legitimate reasons for wanting to bring you into their shop. It is just that the MB warranty is a particularly bad one. As a rule of thumb, if an OEM is offering an EXCLUSIONARY warranty (one in which they list what ISN'T covered) it is worth considering. INCLUSIONARY warranties (such as the one that MB offers) are rarely worth buying.

RudolfD said:

It’s handled by the salesmen...

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No it's not. Salesmen do not sell MBI policies. Only the F&I (Finance and Insurance) department sells MBI policies.

I don’t think MB makes much more off warranties...

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Well, at least when you're wrong, you certainly go big, lol.

MBI policies are the most profitable thing that a dealership can cram up your butt. They are literally selling air.

I’d say buy it, but at a discount.

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You should stick to giving "advice" on subjects that you actually know something about.

avanti said:

You should check your assumptions on that one. Generally speaking, extended warranties are among the most profitable products on the market. They are not far from fraud.

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Very well put.

It IS true that OEM extended warranties should not be rejected out of hand (third-party warranties are ALWAYS garbage). The OEM can fix the car for less money than anybody else, and they have other legitimate reasons for wanting to bring you into their shop. It is just that the MB warranty is a particularly bad one. As a rule of thumb, if an OEM is offering an EXCLUSIONARY warranty (one in which they list what ISN'T covered) it is worth considering. INCLUSIONARY warranties (such as the one that MB offers) are rarely worth buying.

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Are you guys reading this stuff?

I bought an aftermarket warranty (Warranty Solutions) 7 year 100k for the wifes yukon back in 2011. I bought it from the dealer at time of purchase and I paid about 1300 bucks with a $50 deductible. My service bills have exceeded 10k and the warranty company has never hassled me. In fact, they replaced the tranny at 40k miles, still under factory warranty, with a new one when gm was going to rebuild the existing.

There are horror stories and the inclusion vs exclusion is very interesting. I'll need to do some more research, but I don't want a vehicle my wife drives daily without a warranty.

430 hp 70 said:

I bought an aftermarket warranty (Warranty Solutions) 7 year 100k for the wifes yukon back in 2011. I bought it from the dealer at time of purchase and I paid about 1300 bucks with a $50 deductible.

There are horror stories and the inclusion vs exclusion is very interesting. I'll need to do some more research, but I don't want a vehicle my wife drives daily without a warranty.

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Then get used to losing a ton of money on the depreciation of new and late-model vehicles that are still under the manufacturer's original warranty..

What you are talking about is not a warranty- it's an MBI (Mechanical Breakdown Insurance) policy.